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Steve Waugh reckons that Australia have become so dominant in internationalcricket that administrators might want to think about changing the rules to make rival countries more competitive.”Our job is to do the best we can for Australia. The West Indies teams of the 1980s almost made administrators change the rules so other nations couldcompete,” said Waugh, as quoted in the . “That’s been one of our goals – for us to make rules change so others can compete.”Speaking at a state Chamber of Commerce luncheon, Waugh revealed that he took his own brutal outlook on international cricket from that very West Indian team.”A lot of our players were almost scared of West Indies,” he said. “I remember at one point thinking this game is too hard. It took me 13 Tests just to bepart of a winning side.”I remember sitting in the dressing room at Eden Park in New Zealand,” continued Waugh. “We had just lost, and I looked around at everyone with their heads bowed. And I was thinking, ‘This is too tough. Do I really want to do this?’ That was an important moment”Waugh talked about his first first-class match for New South Wales, and rooming with Imran Khan. “I became very good at answering the phone,” Waugh joked. “I was pretty shy in those days. [Imran] had a big reputation for a lot of things. I was that intimidated by him I just kept quiet and answered the phone.”Waugh also hinted at a muted support of Australia’s sledging tactics, and although he said that he was against “saying something directly against someone,” he was happy to “put doubt in the batsman’s mind. I’m all for that.””For example, if Shane Warne’s bowling into the rough outside the batsman’s legs and he’s trying to sweep, the guy at short leg might say ‘Can you believe this guy’s trying to sweep Warney out of the rough?’ and the player on the other side at bat-pad might say ‘Obviously these guys don’t have a TV in their rooms – they’ve got no idea what’s going on’,” said Waugh. “If we can get the batsman in some doubt, that’s fair enough.”

When the World Cup fixture list appeared and Pakistan saw they had a match against the Netherlands in the delightful surroundings of Paarl, they would have welcomed the prospect with relish. Now, however, they will be approaching the game with rather more anxiety after their thrashing at the hands of England on Saturday just down the road in Cape Town.Group A was always going to be tight, with Australia the favourites. Then it was thought that Pakistan, India and England would battle it out for the other two places in the next stage of the tournament. When England forfeited four points to Zimbabwe the equation took on a new element, for presuming that Zimbabwe pick up another eight points from matches against the Netherlands and Namibia, one more win would put them right in the shake-up.The fact is that Pakistan’s batting has taken on a fragile appearance that was ruthlessly exposed by England. They might have an impressive hand of match-winning bowlers, but the batsmen have to back them up and that has not been case recently.It is perhaps fanciful to imagine that Pakistan’s batsmen will fail to prosper against the Dutch collection of medium pacers but, given a receptive pitch, it is possible that they could make it very difficult for a side lacking confidence.The problem for the men in the dazzling orange kit is that they will find it extremely hard to score enough runs to put pressure on the Pakistani batsmen. That will be a consoling thought for Pakistan, but there will be another fear lurking in the back of their minds. The weather.Should rain prevent Pakistan from taking the expected four points from this match, and prevent them from enhancing their run-rate, their fate would rest with others as well as themselves. They would have to beat India and Zimbabwe in their remaining matches, and hope against hope that England can do to India what they suffered themselves.They will be encouraged to know that the forecast is fine for the Winelands area of the Cape, but forecasters have been known to get it wrong. Just as Pakistan did on Saturday. At least the Pakistanis can take heart from the fact the Dutch will want to play whatever the weather. Against Australia, there would have been every reason for Roland Lefebvre, the Dutch captain, to take a look at conditions and claim the two points for an abandonment. He decided not to do so but gain the experience from playing the game.Even so, Pakistan must hope that there is a bright blue sky and that this is not the day for the bright orange flags to be waving in celebration at the end.

The chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board, Tim Lamb, has begun the process of rebuilding England’s relationship with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union, after deciding not to appeal against the World Cup technical committee’s decision to award their World Cup match to Zimbabwe.”I accept this has been a very protracted and difficult issue and it has taken the gloss off not only England’s participation in this tournament but there’s no doubt it has detracted from the integrity of the event,” Lamb conceded.”It’s easy to be wise after the event, but I believe that throughout this whole process right from December 28 which was when the issue really started, as far as myself and the ECB are concerned, when the government said what it did about their view of us going to Zimbabwe, I don’t think there is anything we could have done differently.”It’s time to put this behind us, we’ve given it our best shot, we’ve done everything possible to try to persuade the ICC of the merits of our case and Ithink, in the wider interests of cricket and the need to start building bridgeswith our counterparts in other boards, it’s best if we put this issue behindus.”Referring to England’s relationship with the ZCU, Lamb stressed: “On a personal level everything has remained extremely cordial and friendly.”I personally phoned the chairman and chief executive of the ZCU on the day we announced our decision not to play, to express my sympathy to them and the regret in which we had come to our decision.”We knew it was going to be a massive event for them and I know how disappointed the ZCU would have been but I just hope that they would understandwhy we took the decision we did and we can move forward as friends in thefuture.”I haven’t received any specific assurance but I very much hopeful there won’t be any repercussions as far as the South African tour to the UK is concerned and certainly as far as the Zimbabwe Cricket Union sending their team to Englnad this summer as well.”I hope as part of the process of putting this behind us that both the toursthat Zimbabwe and South Africa are undertaking to the UK this summer and thetours that England are undertaking to Zimbabwe and South Africa in the winter of2004/5 will take place without any hitches.”Lamb believes that the death threat posed in the letter to the players from the so-called “Sons and Daughters of Zimbabwe” was a serious one.”I can assure you it totally contradicted much of what we had heard before, it added to our disquiet and our concern about the whole nature of the advice that we had got up to that point and we’re still getting from various security, intelligence and police sources.”The ECB took the decision with the support of the players that in the circumstances and in the light of not having totally satisfactory assurances ofwhether the letter posed a serious threat that we had no alternative but toapproach the ICC and get them to try and locate the fixture.”The players and the ECB had a major concern about the wholly inconsistent contradictory and inadequate assessments of the threat posed by the letter sentby the Sons and Daughters of Zimbabwe on the part of the police and of thesecurity and intelligence professionals in charge of security arrangements.”The new evidence put before the technical committee, including that of thepolice and security personnel, established that the England players were, in thecircumstances, entitled to take the overt threats against them and theirfamilies seriously.”

Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan inspired a dramatic West Indiancollapse on the second day of the opening Test in Galle and then warned thetourists that they are yet to see him at his best.Muralitharan, who has been working hard in the nets on a new mysterydelivery designed to counteract pad-thrusting batsmen, claimed 5-21 in theday to finish with 6-125, as West Indies lost their last six wickets for 25."Initially, it was tough, as Brian Lara, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Carl Hooperplayed really well on a really good batting track," he said afterwards,clearly delighted with the turnaround, which had pulled the home team backinto the game."But we always thought that if we could get Lara we could get the otherwickets quickly, as they had some inexperienced batsmen to come.The 29-year-old off-spinner, who has now taken 356 Test wickets in only 67matches, has been receiving ice-treatment on a sore shoulder."I did have a little shoulder injury, which I picked up whilst doingweights," he said. "I had stopped bowling in the nets and struggled inSharjah."Gradually, I started to bowl again. During the first day my rhythm was notquite there, but today it was coming out really nicely. Hopefully, it willget better and better as the series progresses."Muralitharan, ever the optimist, believes Sri Lanka can still win despitethe West Indies piling up 448 in their first innings."Unfortunately, Lara got a big one, but this is a batting wicket and stillwe can get a result if we can make a big score. By the fourth and fifth daythe ball is going to spin a long way."He is particularly looking forward to having another crack at Lara."It is a pleasure to bowl at Brian (Lara)," he said "He is such a wonderfulplayer. Unlike other players he doesn’t have any restrictions and can playshots all-round the wicket, so it is always a challenge to bowl at him.First round to Lara after the Trinidadian superstar smashed a brilliant 178,but Muralitharan warned him: "As a bowler I have an advantage. I can makeseveral mistakes, but if a batsman makes one then he is finished and I win."

Man-of-the-Match Paul Collingwood is hoping to have clinched his place in England’s World Cup squad after his maiden one-day international century carried England to their second successive win over Sri Lanka.The Durham all-rounder rescued England from the perilous position of 122 for six to ensure a total of 258, which proved more than enough for victory.”It’s been a good day,” Collingwood said afterwards. “I came in at a difficult situation and managed to get ones and twos and (Craig) White played a great innings as well.”We just knew we had to bat the overs out and we were trying to get out to 46to 47 overs and then a slog, but we were pleased because we managed to getthree, four, five an over throughout that period,” he told Sky Sports.Asked whether he believed his World Cup place for February and March is secure, Collingwood replied: “Let’s hope so. Obviously I got dropped for the first two games and that was disappointing, but I went in the nets and thankfully it’s gone well since then.”Meanwhile Nasser Hussain described Collingwood’s performance as “exceptional”, and believes England can take heart from another win ahead of the fourth Test, which starts in Melbourne on Boxing Day.”We were a little bit clumsy early on,” said the England captain. “We should have got used to the bounce quicker than we did especially since we’d already played a Test here. But we played our way of trouble, and I think that we should give them credit for that.””It was an exceptional performance (by Collingwood). He has looked very good since he got into the team and was very good today in very difficult circumstances. Luckily our last recognised batsman Craig White was able to stay with him.”Hussain, who had some sharp words for his side after two dropped catches during the Sri Lankan innings, also drew encouragement from further impressive bowling displays from youngsters James Anderson and Steve Harmison.”They’ve got things that you need at this level. For example Anderson’s slower ball gives us something that we haven’t had before, as well as Harmison’s pace and bounce.”But I wouldn’t get too excited. After taking such a drubbing in the tour every game against Sri Lanka has become like a semi-final, and I just think I needed to let them know that we need to play well all the time and take our chances. It’s nicer to go into the Christmas period with two wins under our belts.”Sri Lanka’s captain skipper Sanath Jayasuriya pointed to dropped catches as the key reason for his team’s defeat.”I think we bowled well but the fielding was not up to the standard. We dropped so many catches and you can’t afford to do that. We dropped their important batters and paid the price.”I think 260 was still gettable but we lost a wicket early on again. When wewere here before in 1998 we won a few matches but we need to be more positive.”

Durham County Cricket Club today announced that 25 year-old all-rounder Paul Collingwood has signed a new contract extending his stay at the club for another two years. Collingwood made his one-day international debut for England this season and will go with the squad to Zimbabwe in October, hoping to establish his credentials as a genuine World Cup prospect.He says: “I am delighted to have signed a new contract and to be part of an exciting team at Durham. We have won promotion to the Norwich Union League Division One with a young team which can only get better and which will also develop as a four-day side.”I hope to play a big part in Durham’s promotion bid in the CricInfoChampionship and I would love to be part of a successful cup run.”Club Chairman Bill Midgley says; “Paul is an outstanding talent who hasimpressed even the Australians. He is a fine example of what we have set out to achieve here by giving young local talent a chance, and we are all delighted that Paul has committed himself to us for the next two years.”Durham secured promotion to the Norwich Union League Division One ina thrilling nine run victory over Worcestershire at the Riverside onthe final Sunday of a season during which Collingwood, a local lad from Shotley Bridge, has played a significant part.

West Indian preparations may well have been bedeviled by poor weather andinjuries, but that did not hinder the performance of star batsmen BrianLara, who announced his return to Test cricket with a brilliant hundred onthe opening day of this three-Test series against Sri Lanka at Galle onTuesday.Number three batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan and star player Brian Lara frustratedSri Lanka in enervating heat as they added 145 for the third wicket to leaveWest Indies well placed on 316 for three at the close.Sarwan played diligently and well to score 88, particularly in an afternoonsession that saw 125 runs scored. Lara’s innings, though, overshadowed thatof the promising Guyanan, who missed out on a first Test century.Coming to the crease after the fall of opener Daren Ganga, with the inningspoised on 95 for two, Lara sped to a 71 ball fifty full of sublime strokesand tilted the game firmly towards the West Indies.The 32-year-old Trinidadian then marched on, despite the loss of Sarwan andwith a certain sense of inevitability, to his 16th Test century, which hecompleted off just 150 balls, before finishing the day unbeaten on 117.For Lara it ended a long wait. International runs had not dried up, but hisbig scores had. It was 11 months since he scored a ton – the last being 182he scored against Australia in Adelaide last December – and it was his firstin 16 innings.Lara, included in the squad despite still suffering from a long-standinghamstring injury, showed no signs of not being fully fit and, temporarily atleast, silenced critics who believe he is a spent force, with too much egoand too little heart.It was great innings in very taxing conditions. Modestly, he said afterwardsthat he had “enjoyed the sea breeze” but conditions were tough, withtemperatures in excess of 30 C and 90 per cent humidity levels. He alsohad to contend with master off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.Unlike in Colombo, when he had scratch out 43 and looked a shadow of hisformer self, he batted fluently, clearly determined to be positive againstthe Sri Lankan spinners.He hit 12 boundaries in all, some of which were simply dazzling, including atrademark one-legged flick through mid-wicket of Vaas, a dancing lofteddrive off Jayasuriya and several vintage cover drives.He was reprieved twice by the Sri Lankans, who had a day to forget in thefield. Wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara dropped a difficult chance off SanathJayasuriya when the left-hander had scored 31 and then also failed to gethis glove to an edge (it was an even harder catch) when on 93.Speaking afterwards, he said: “I have been working on a few things in thelast six weeks and I am looking to try and play a bit straighter. It’ isnice to go out there, work on something, and eventually get the results.The only bowler to consistently test Lara was Muralitharan, who toiled awayfor 40 overs, picking only one wicket, but still bowled with plenty ofvariation, guile and control.”Muralitharan is a very good bowler and I enjoyed the competition,” he said.”I think you have to keep him thinking. He is going to keep you underpressure if you just look to stay there, so I think you need to keepscoring.”It’s a very good position but it is very important that the second inningsis not a very important innings. We need to get 500-600 runs and put SriLanka under pressure. We cannot allow them to get back into the game.”Ominously, the man who holds the record for the highest Test and first classscore, also added: “I’m very happy now, but I am going to come back tomorrowand look for something really big.”Sri Lanka had picked three frontline spinners in the team, hoping that theCaribbean batsmen would come unstuck on a biscuit dry pitch tailor made fortheir slow bowlers. Such hopes soon evaporated after they lost an importanttoss and realised just how good a batting pitch it was.Chaminda Vaas bowled well with the new ball, producing a jaffa to dismiss asurprisingly diffident Chris Gayle, and then accounting for Ganga afterlunch. But thereafter only Muralitharan threatened.Earlier in the day the Sri Lankans had picked right-arm seamer CharithaFernando for his first Test match and recalled left-arm spinner NiroshanBandaratillake and middle order batsman Russel Arnold.West Indies played a second frontline spinner, slow left-arm bowler NeilMcGarrell, apparently after deciding the pitch would favour the spinners,but most probably because of Reon Kings suspected hernia.

The Australian Cricket Board (ACB) announced today that the National Selection Panel (NSP) has chosen a 15-man squad for the one-day international leg of the 2003 Travelex Tour of the West Indies.The squad is:

	STATE	AGE	CAPS
Ricky Ponting (captain)	TAS	28	168
Adam Gilchrist (vice-captain)	WA	31	162
Michael Bevan	NSW	32	205
Andrew Bichel	QLD	32	46
Jason Gillespie	SA	27	50
Nathan Hauritz	QLD	21	5
Ian Harvey	VIC	31	49
Matthew Hayden	QLD	31	65
Brad Hogg	WA	32	25
Brett Lee	NSW	26	65
Darren Lehmann	SA	33	95
Jimmy Maher	QLD	29	21
Damien Martyn*	WA	31	123
Glenn McGrath	NSW	33	179
Andrew Symonds	QLD	27	63

* Damien Martyn’s selection is subject to fitness, following recent minor surgery to a fractured right index finger. His fitness will be assessed next week in Perth.Commenting on the squad chosen to play the best-of-seven series against the West Indies, NSP Chairman Trevor Hohns said: "The group we have selected, with the inclusion of Jason Gillespie for Nathan Bracken, is basically that which won the World Cup last month."Winning a tournament as important as that is a fairly good indicator that at this point in time, we have the right player-mix at the one-day international level."The players we have selected all deserve their place in the squad," he said.Strike-bowler Jason Gillespie who was forced to leave the World Cup prematurely due to heel injury, returns to limited-overs action in place of his cover-player in South Africa, Nathan Bracken.Meanwhile Damien Martyn, who was ruled out of the Test leg of the Travelex Tour of the West Indies due to a fractured right index finger, will need to prove his fitness before the squad’s scheduled departure on 9 May.Trevor Hohns said: "Damien is currently undergoing the recovery work required to get him over the finger injury that has kept him out of the current Test series."We will keep close watch on his progress and make a decision on his availability for the series based on the relevant medical advice, closer to the time of departure," he said.

Star West Indian batsman, Brian Lara, has been given the all-clear to playin the forthcoming tour of Sri Lanka according to a BBC Online reportMonday, but doubts still linger over his fitness.Doubts over Lara’s participation in the tour had surfaced during the teamstraining camp in Jamaica this week when the 32-year-old left-hander revealedhe was still suffering from a long-standing hamstring injury.Lara went for a MRI scan on Wednesday and a fitness report was then handedover to the team management later in the week.They had been speculation during the weekend that the report showed thatthere had been “no improvement” in the injury and the Trinadad Guardian evenquoted “reliable sources” who said the team management was divided overwhether Lara should tour if not fully fit.However, team manager, Ricky Skerritt, said Sunday: “Having looked at theresults, the doctors are satisfied. The last three days Brian has beentraining rather actively without any side effects.”But, according to Trinadad Guardian sources: “When the report came back fromthe doctor, it showed that there was no improvement on Lara’s hamstringinjury.”The newspaper then reports that an emergency meeting was then held onThursday night, that included all team officials – manager, coach, captain,physiotherapist, the doctor in Jamaica and a West Indies Cricket Boardrepresentative – Lara’s participation was apparently put to the vote and onhealth reasons, it was voted 4 -2 to leave him home.This tough stance mellowed over the weekend when chairman of the selectors,Michael Findlay, said: “In the end though it will come down to how Brianfeels about his own fitness and whether or not he can handle such a tour aslies ahead.”Lara has played before with the injury, which he first strained when WestIndies toured England. He then played against Australia and South Africawith the injury before finally withdrawing from the recent tour to Zimbabweand Kenya.The West Indies are scheduled to play three Tests against Sri Lanka followedby a triangular series involving Zimbabwe in the eight week tour

After returning from a strenuous tour of England where the Pakistan team drew the short Test series but lost the NatWest final to Australia, some of the boys are enjoying a rare spree of rest and recreation. The 1st week of August will mark the start of a training camp to prepare the team for the Asian Test Championship followed by a 3-Test cum ODI home series against the visiting Black Caps.A 25-man ‘probables’ squad is to be announced at any time. I am sure the experts in the PCB know fully well the shortcomings of the team and would try to eradicate them during the forthcoming camp. The two most conspicuous weaknesses that often become instrumental in recent debacles are poor standards of physical fitness and fielding. The third, possibly the most important, needing immediate attention is not being mentally tough and the lack of a killer instinct.A horrible 9 wickets defeat at the hands of Australia in the NatWest final was the anti-climax of their superb performance in the earlier part of the tournament. While the team lacked any sign of a killer instinct both in batting and bowling, the Aussies proved to be a thoroughly professional outfit. They had planned to fight the last battle with meticulous care and executed their plan brilliantly.This was certainly not the first occasion the Pakistan team having emerged victorious in the earlier encounters flopped when it came to the all-important finish. The failure to conquer the peak seems to have become a psychological barrier for the team. There is a general belief that teams from these parts leave too much to fate. Though the part played by ‘lady luck’ in victories and defeats cannot be denied, it does not mean that the players should not apply themselves correctly and put in their best. Luck has its own mood and should better be left at that.Scanning the recent past, one finds that there have been at least three top tournaments in which Pakistan have credibly won the earlier matches but crumbled in the finals, letting the top honours slip away. World Cup 99 was the most important event where Pakistan’s defeat in the finals deprived the country of sharing the signal honour of winning the world cup twice with the West Indies.This was followed by the loss of the ARY Gold Cup at Sharjah and then the NatWest Trophy in England. While in World Cup 99, Pakistan did lose a few matches leading up to the final, it had a clean sweep in the ARY Gold Cup. In the NatWest Series, it marched alongside Australia gaining equal points to reach the final.Discussing the three events in a little more detail, one finds in the World Cup 99, Pakistan emerged with a sparkling success in its pool by winning four out of five matches. It defeated the West Indies by 27 runs, Scotland by 94 runs, Australia by 10 runs and New Zealand by 62 runs. In the 5th Pool match, however, it suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of minnows Bangladesh by 62 runs, a debacle that continues to haunt cricket lovers in Pakistan till today.Jumping into the Super-Six Stage, Pakistan lost two of the three matches. It defeated Zimbabwe by 148 runs but lost to South Africa by 3 wickets and India by 47 runs. By inflicting a glorious 9 wickets defeat on New Zealand in the semi final, Pakistan landed into the finals of the prestigious event.Though Australia and South Africa were the hot favourites, Pakistan made it to the final leaving South Africa behind. Reaching the final of the World Cup for the second time was a great achievement. This was perhaps the juncture where the team was required to bring into play the best of its skill together with the full weight of its physical as well as mental strength. It failed to do so. Overpowered by the ghost of Australia’s super-strength, Pakistan’s batting line crumbled for a paltry 132, a total too small for the bowlers to defend. The bowling arsenal of which Pakistan was always proud, thus failed to play its magic. Pakistan lost the coveted honour by 8 wickets. It was a clear case of breaking down under pressure.In the final of ARY Gold Cup at Sharjah, Pakistan suffered a 77 runs defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka. With full domination over the tournament Pakistan had reached the final undefeated. Surprisingly, the fact that Pakistan had defeated Sri Lanka twice in the league matches also failed to act as a morale booster. Pakistan obviously lost the battle of nerves.Coming back to the NatWest Series, Pakistan was absolutely at par with Australia before start of the final. Both the teams had defeated England thrice, lost once to each other and secured equal points. In the earlier encounter in which Pakistan defeated Australia, the team was able to pile up a total of 291 runs.As for bowling, the one-man demolition squad of Waqar Younis (6 for 59) devastated the Aussies for 254 runs, thus hoisting a 36 runs victory for Pakistan.With such performances in the league matches, what could be the reasons for Pakistan to lay down arms in the final without putting up a fight? The team was out for a petty 152 runs in 42.3 overs. Not being able to play the full quota of 50 overs in such a crucial match was perhaps the worst example of casual and careless batting.Look at master-batsman Saeed Anwar (highest scorer with 27) unnecessarily lifting a ball to mid-off and getting caught on a poor shot. And then the 5-star bowling squad led by superstars Waqar Younis and Saqlain Mushtaq completely failing to claim a wicket. The only wicket that Australia lost was on a run-out. Pakistan suffered a humiliating defeat by 9 wickets.What does such a repeat of debacle in a final indicate? The team is not deficient of talent or prowess in batting or bowling. Fielding is poor but it only makes a marginal difference. Though it needs definite improvement, the weakness did not prevent the team from reaching the finals. By my understanding of the game, the reasons are psychological. The team lacks mental strength to fight and win the last battle. Overpowered by reputations of its opponents, it succumbs to pressure. It is shy of grabbing a target, which happens to be close but looks too far.I would advise the PCB to start some psychological training in the National Cricket Academy to handle such problems. By doing so, we will not only build up the mental strength but also save many talented players from extinction. For example, there is nothing wrong with players like Shahid Afridi except for temperament and lack of self-control. Once treated by a psychologist they can turn into gems for the future.